The economic team highlighted job creation, salary recovery, lower inflation and tax reduction
The authorities of Economy and Finance, Central Bank and OPP presented the 2023 Accountability Project before the Senate’s Integrated Budget and Treasury Commission. There they valued the concrete results obtained in this period, as a consequence of “a different economic policy.” They highlighted the creation of more than 76,000 jobs, an increase in real wages and the lowest inflation in the last 18 years.
After the appearance before the legislators, the members of the economic team reviewed the characteristics of this administration’s policy on the subject. They argued that, despite the adverse factors and their impact on social, economic and health issues, it achieved the best credit rating in history, as well as the lowest country risk. “Important structural reforms were carried out,” said Arbeleche.
Regarding the labor market, he indicated: “As economic policy makers, the result in terms of employment is fundamental.” Uruguay recovered the jobs affected during the pandemic, as well as 52,000 jobs lost in the previous period. This indicator continues to grow and is expected to reach 100,000 net employees in the period. Additionally, there was a recovery in real wages, which in 2024 accumulated 3.7% and which in 2025 will continue to increase, according to the projections contained in the document presented by the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF).
Inflation, meanwhile, is within the target range for the fifteenth consecutive month, and according to the Central Bank’s projection, it will remain around the center of the range for the next 24 months, at 4.5%, estimated its president Washington Ribeiro. He added that institutional and monetary policy changes helped ensure that the pandemic did not have a significant impact on the population, its purchasing power and its income.
Regarding public companies, the Administration tried to improve management and efficiency without losing the quality of service, the authorities stressed. The director of the Office of Planning and Budget (OPP), Fernando Blanco, reported that, between 2020 and 2024, there was a real decrease in public service rates of around 10% for UTE, 14% for Antel and 1.7% for OSE. In the case of fuels, and with the application of the criteria for setting sales prices of the urgent consideration law, the competitiveness of the private sector was improved, he added.
